The country's greatest rail tragedy in over 20 years has killed more than 280 people after two passenger trains crashed in the eastern Indian state of Odisha.
The disaster, which occurred approximately 220 kilometers southwest of Kolkata, created a chaotic sight as rescuers ascended the derailed trains to use cutting torches to smash down doors and windows and free trapped passengers.
According to P.K. Jena, the state's senior administrative officer, the accident in the eastern state of Odisha's Balasore district injured almost 900 persons.
Amitabh Sharma, a spokesman for the railways ministry, reported that ten to twelve coaches of one train derailed, and pieces of some of the damaged coaches fell onto an adjacent track. A passenger train traveling in the other way struck the debris, he continued, leading to the derailment of up to three coaches on the second train.
The Press Trust of India stated that a third freight train was also involved, although railroad authorities have not yet confirmed this information. According to PTI, some of the derailed passenger coaches collided with freight train wagons.
One of the world's largest train networks resides in India. Every day, more than 12 million people travel across India in 14,000 trains along 40,000 miles of track.
The deadliest railway accident to ever happen in India took place in 1981 when a crowded passenger train in Bihar state was blown off the rails and into a river by a cyclone, killing at least 800 people.
On India's railways, over hundred accidents happen each year despite government efforts to increase safety and renovate aging equipment.
The disaster, which occurred approximately 220 kilometers southwest of Kolkata, created a chaotic sight as rescuers ascended the derailed trains to use cutting torches to smash down doors and windows and free trapped passengers.
According to P.K. Jena, the state's senior administrative officer, the accident in the eastern state of Odisha's Balasore district injured almost 900 persons.
Amitabh Sharma, a spokesman for the railways ministry, reported that ten to twelve coaches of one train derailed, and pieces of some of the damaged coaches fell onto an adjacent track. A passenger train traveling in the other way struck the debris, he continued, leading to the derailment of up to three coaches on the second train.
The Press Trust of India stated that a third freight train was also involved, although railroad authorities have not yet confirmed this information. According to PTI, some of the derailed passenger coaches collided with freight train wagons.
One of the world's largest train networks resides in India. Every day, more than 12 million people travel across India in 14,000 trains along 40,000 miles of track.
The deadliest railway accident to ever happen in India took place in 1981 when a crowded passenger train in Bihar state was blown off the rails and into a river by a cyclone, killing at least 800 people.
On India's railways, over hundred accidents happen each year despite government efforts to increase safety and renovate aging equipment.
